Winamax: 800 Million Expresso Tournaments & Golden Ingots Giveaway

Winamax is gearing up to celebrate a major milestone: the 800 millionth Expresso tournament. To mark the occasion, the French online poker platform is reintroducing “Ingots” – prize multipliers that can boost winnings up to 3,000x – with a new distribution system extending across 4 million Expresso tournaments, a significant increase from the 3 million in the previous 700 millionth edition celebration.

The promotion underscores the continued success of the Expresso format, an ultra-turbo Sit & Go launched in 2013. Winamax is responding to player demand with boosted prize pools, offering a unique incentive within its popular game.

How the Ingots Will Be Distributed

A total of 801 Ingots will be randomly distributed throughout the qualifying Expresso tournaments, specifically those numbered between 796,000,000 and 800,000,000, and appearing in multiples of 5,000. The Ingots are categorized into five tiers:

• 400 “5K Ingots” will be awarded in Expresso tournaments numbered 796,005,000, 796,015,000, 796,025,000, and so on.
• 360 “10K Ingots” will be found in Expresso tournaments numbered 796,010,000, 796,020,000, 796,030,000, and so on.
• 36 “100K Ingots” will appear in Expresso tournaments numbered 796,100,000, 796,200,000, 796,300,000, and so on.
• 4 “Million Ingots” will be awarded in Expresso tournaments numbered 796,000,000, 797,000,000, 798,000,000, and 799,000,000.
• 1 “800 Million Ingot” will be awarded in the 800,000,000th Expresso tournament.

The Multiplier Effect on Winnings

The size of the multiplier applied to a player’s winnings is directly tied to the number of Expresso tournaments they’ve played since the last Ingot was awarded. The more Expresso games a player participates in between Ingot drops, the higher their potential multiplier. This multiplier can range from 6x to a substantial 3,000x the standard payout, should they win the tournament. Even players who don’t win can benefit, as the Ingots also reward second and third-place finishers.

This promotion taps into behavioral psychology, specifically the “sunk cost fallacy,” as noted by Dr. Anya Sharma, a behavioral economist. The more a player invests in playing Expresso tournaments without hitting an Ingot, the more compelled they are to continue playing, hoping to maximize their potential multiplier. This creates a potentially addictive loop, encouraging continued engagement with the platform.

Winamax has also launched a live “lottery sit & go” TV show called “Alerte Expresso,” featuring three Expresso tournaments with two live contestants in the studio and one joining online. These tournaments offer prize pools of up to €800,000, distributed with 80% to the first-place finisher, 12% to second, and 8% to third.

The Expresso format itself is an ultra-turbo poker game where three players compete for a randomly determined jackpot, with games typically lasting around five minutes. Players can choose between “classic” Expresso and Expresso Nitro, with buy-ins ranging from €0.25 to €500. The Nitro version features a smaller starting stack and faster blind levels, offering an even more accelerated gameplay experience. The rake charged on Expressos is 7%, except for €0.25 and €0.50 Expressos, where We see 8%.

The inherent variability of Expresso tournaments means short-term profits and losses can fluctuate significantly, influenced by factors like multipliers, card distribution, and luck. However, the introduction of the Ingots and the “Alerte Expresso” TV show demonstrate Winamax’s commitment to enhancing the player experience and adding excitement to this popular format.